Sound healing involves instruments like singing bowls or gongs, in either a one-on-one session or in a group setting. Proponents and researchers say sound healing can realign our brainwaves to a state of homeostasis, and the resulting relaxation can improve things like anxiety and insomnia. Some research even suggests that sound can improve physical things like cholesterol and blood pressure.
The frequency from sound causes a shift in our brainwave using entrainment, a law of physics. Entrainment in terms of sound healing is the process of using external stimuli, such as light or sound, to bring brainwaves into harmony that are otherwise out of sync. Entrainment from sound offers a stable frequency our brainwaves can attune to rather than jumping all around, much like using an anchor, or focal point, in meditation. The resulting balance can positively affect the rest of the systems of the body.
A lot of the benefits of sound healing mimic those of meditation. They can be thought of as indirect results of a more balanced system and in-sync system. Yogic philosophy talks a lot about how both our physical and mental health are affected by the balance in our systems, and how most ailments we experience can be traced back to an imbalance or blockage somewhere that is disrupting the natural flow of energy within us.
Sound healing can restore balance to the way the frequencies in our brain fluctuate. Researchers and proponents of sound healing say it can help with issues like anxiety and insomnia, and even improve our concentration. Here are a few other things sound healing has been shown to help with:
- Access deeper levels of meditation
- Stress reduction/anxiety
- Depression
- PTSD
- Pain
- Lower cholesterol
- Lower blood pressure
Sound healing sessions will be unique to the facilitator, but most will incorporate tools like singing bowls, gongs, drums, and tuning forks. Whether you’re doing a one-on-one healing session or are part of a group setting, the practice might begin with a breathing exercise, or some other relaxation technique. This is similar to how you would begin a meditation session; in fact, people who struggle with meditation might find sound healing helpful because the sound provides a constant anchor.
In a sound healing session, you will likely be laying down and will be encouraged to get as comfortable as possible. As you begin to fall into a state of relaxation, the facilitator will start playing their instruments in whatever order they have planned or what they feel compelled to play based on the energy they’re receiving from you. Sound healing is mostly a passive experience, but some participation in terms of focused relaxation and breathing can be helpful. At the beginning of the session, it will take some time for your to relax and begin to slip into meditation, but once you’ve started to relax, the sounds of the instruments will begin to guide the experience.